Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Wendover

Viscount Astor: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have received any evidence from OTB Engineering on whether the Wendover short mined tunnel proposed for HS2 should be cost neutral; and if so, what assessment they have made of that evidence.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: HS2 Ltd received a copy of the OTB Engineering report on 25 October 2016. There is no evidence in the report which would require the current cost estimates prepared by HS2 Ltd to need reviewing.

Driving: Eyesight

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 24 October (HL2259), what is their assessment of the views of Brake that regular eye tests for drivers could cut the number of casualties on roads, and whether they will reconsider using variable message signs on motorways and other major roads as a contribution to reducing road accidents.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: I refer the Noble Lord to my previous answer of 24 October, which stated Highways England uses electronic variable message signs primarily to advise drivers of immediate safety issues and journey information. Highways England is not therefore seeking to use signs to raise awareness of general driver health issues and will not be displaying messages to encourage drivers to have their eyesight tested. Britain’s roads are very safe by all international comparisons. We remain second only to Sweden in terms of global road safety, with 2014 witnessing the third lowest number of road deaths since records began.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Rented Housing

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they consider that common law tenancies for (1) residential accommodation in general, and (2) houses in multiple occupation in particular, are being misused, and if so whether changes are needed to tenancy laws.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Common law tenancies in the private rented sector in England account for a small part of the housing market, mainly where the rent payable is high or the landlord lives in the property. The default tenancy is assured short hold, with 81 per cent of the 4.3 million household in the private rented sector occupying under such tenancies. The Government is not aware of misuse of common law tenancies to avoid statutory protections. In particular the provisions in the Housing Act 2004 relating to Houses in Multiple Occupation, including mandatory licensing, apply to properties occupied by common law tenancies.In October 2010 changes were introduced to assured tenancy rules by increasing the rent limit so tenancies with rents not exceeding £100,000 are no longer common law tenancies. The Government has no plans to make any further changes to the laws applying to common law tenancies.

Rented Housing

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have made an assessment of the use of common law tenancies for the provision of housing accommodation and what is their estimate of the number of common law tenancies used for the provision of housing accommodation.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: There are an estimated 4.3 million households in the private rented sector in England. The majority, 85 per cent, are statutorily protected tenancies (assured, assured short hold and regulated tenancies). The Government has not made any estimate of how many of the remaining 15 per cent (which includes tenancies and licences granted by resident landlords, educational establishments and others) are common law tenancies.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Kashmir: Human Rights

Lord Ahmed: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of India concerning recent reports of arrests, killings and human right abuses in Kashmir.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We are aware and concerned by reports of human rights abuses in Indian-administered Kashmir. Any allegation of human rights abuse in any country should be investigated thoroughly, promptly and transparently.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent Rally for Aleppo demonstration which took place in London; and what action they will take in response to reports that 50,000 children have been killed in Syria since 2011.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK Government deplores the loss of civilian life in Syria since the conflict started in 2011. We condemn the actions of the Syrian regime and those who back it in prosecuting this awful war, which has caused widespread death, injury and humanitarian suffering. This conflict is feeding the migration challenges we see across Europe and fuelling extremism.I understand and share the concerns of those who participated in the rally for Aleppo.The UK continues to speak out in the UN Security Council for progress on the crisis in Syria. The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) convened a meeting of key partners on Syria in London on 16 October to discuss what more the international community can do.We continue to consider all options. Ultimately the regime and its supporters - Russia and Iran - need to halt their offensive and resume peace talks and - as a matter of urgency - allow the UN to deliver aid throughout Syria, including Eastern Aleppo. We will continue to work to this end.

Ministers: Conduct

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their policy on the involvement of ministers in encouraging protest outside foreign embassies based in the UK.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson)'s words reflect overwhelming concern at Russia's actions in Syria which are contributing to the atrocious levels of violence in that country.The UK urges Russia to start working with the international community to oversee and monitor a credible ceasefire, and begin working for the political transition that can bring about a long-term solution. This is the only viable path towards the peace and security that the Syrian people deserve.

Islamic State: Yazidis

Baroness Helic: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the extent of the trafficking of Yazidi women by Daesh in Iraq and Syria; what countries have been identified as their destination; and what representations they have made to the governments of those countries in relation to identifying and assisting any such women and girls.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: ​In June 2016 the Human Rights Council published a report detailing the horrific extent of trafficking of Yezidi women within Iraq and Syria. We do not have any evidence to suggest that Yezidi women are being trafficked outside of Iraq and Syria. We continue to work closely with our Global Coalition partners to defeat Daesh, including those in the region.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the need for a greater period or more stages of pre-legislative scrutiny in advance of the introduction of the expected bill to repeal the European Communities Act 1972.

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government who is responsible for naming, and drafting, the expected bill to repeal the European Communities Act 1972.

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have begun to draft the contents of the expected bill to repeal the European Communities Act 1972 and whether or not there will be an opportunity for Parliament to comment on the bill prior to its introduction.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The Department for Exiting the European Union is working with officials from across government and is responsible for bringing forward legislation in the next session that, when enacted, will repeal the European Communities Act 1972 on the day we leave the EU.The Government will ensure Parliament is able to scrutinise properly the Great Repeal Bill, and is considering the best approach.

Department for International Development

Department for International Development: Private Education

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 24 October (HL2166), under what criteria, and in what circumstances, the education allowance to staff of the Department for International Development is paid.

Lord Bates: The Department for International Development (DFID) provides an education allowance to help UK based employees undertaking overseas assignments to ensure their children receive a quality education where free education does not exist or is unsuitable.To qualify the employee must; serve for at least 12 months on an overseas assignment, be accompanied by partner and have children educated at primary or secondary school in the UK or at the overseas location. Employees who are single, widowed, divorced or legally separated are also entitled to the same support.In certain circumstances, the allowance is paid to DFID employees based in the UK. These circumstances include; if employees children are in examination years when returning to the UK, (this is to ensure continuity of education and offer children assurance through examination process), if the security situation changes in country and DFID needs to evacuate employees and/or children or if prior to travel to overseas location a payment may be made up to 6 weeks before the start of a term.

Overseas Aid

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of concerns expressed by UK non-governmental organisations in response to comments by the Secretary of State for International Development that the global aid system would be built on "some core Conservative principles".

Lord Bates: At the Conservative Party Conference the Secretary of State for International Development made clear the principles under which she will lead the Department for International Development (DFID). She made clear that her priority is to provide people with an opportunity to make the most of their talents and fulfil their potential. She stated that the UK should be proud of the support given to changing lives and creating opportunities in countries that are less fortunate than the UK and that her mandate was to challenge, change and reform the global aid system so that it delivers more for those it is meant to help - the world’s poorest.These are aims which DFID will continue to partner with UK NGOs to deliver.

West Bank: Water Supply

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of restrictions imposed by Israel on the water supply for Palestinians in the West Bank.

Lord Bates: The UK remains concerned by reports of Israeli restrictions on the water supply for Palestinians in the West Bank. UK officials are in regular dialogue with Israel, the Palestinian Authority, the UN, World Bank, EU and other development actors on this issue. The UK continues to stress the urgent need for Israel to take immediate and practical measures to improve the current situation and ensure fair distribution of water in the West Bank and Gaza. The UK encourages both parties to find a swift resolution to this issue and to reconvene the Joint Water Committee to facilitate approval of projects that will improve Palestinian access to water.The Department for International Development is funding a UNICEF programme to lead on developing and updating the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) Water Sanitation and Hygiene Sector Contingency Plan at the national level. This brings together the Palestinian Water Authority and other partners to monitor the water situation in the OPTs and ensure preparedness and effective response in case of an emergency.

Department for Education

Special Educational Needs

Lord Watson of Invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many parental complaints have been made to the Department for Education concerning special educational needs and disability in the last two academic years.

Lord Nash: We receive correspondence from parents, including complaints. To differentiate complaints from other correspondence relating to special educational needs and disability would require a significant update to our correspondence management system.

National Curriculum Tests

Lord Watson of Invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they are reviewing the experiences of children who took their standard assessment tests in the last year and who raised problems of inaccessibility.

Lord Nash: National Curriculum tests are designed to be as accessible as possible to all pupils. They undergo an exhaustive three year development process, entailing several stages of expert review and trialling with pupils. When developing the tests, the Standards and Testing Agency adheres to the principles of universal design set out in Ofqual’s “Guidance on the Principles of Language Accessibility in National Curriculum Assessments”, which has been attached to this answer. The assessments which we have introduced this year have a more challenging expected standard to align with a new National Curriculum which sets expectations to match the best-performing education systems around the world. It is right that we set high aspirations for our children - previous expectations were simply too low and too many pupils who met the old standard did not go on to achieve good GCSEs. We are aware that this year’s English reading test was perceived as being particularly challenging for some pupils. We have listened to the feedback which we have received from schools and are working to improve the test experience for pupils in future years.



Guidance on the Principles of Language Accessibili
(PDF Document, 1.87 MB)

European Union: Education

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the vote to leave the EU, what action they are taking to ensure that for so long as EU information continues to be provided to schools and other educational establishments it is properly balanced in accordance with statutory requirements.

Lord Nash: Sections 406 and 407 of the Education Act 1996 require schools to prevent political indoctrination and ensure the balanced treatment of political issues, including the UK’s membership of the European Union. Schools are aware of these requirements, and it is up to schools to understand their pupils’ needs and tailor their teaching accordingly.

Apprentices: Taxation

Lord Aberdare: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the likely increase or decrease in the numbers of small and medium-sized enterprises taking on apprentices following the introduction of the apprenticeship levy.

Lord Nash: We are committed to supporting small and medium-sized employers to take on apprentices. We know that nearly 95% of current employers with apprentices are small or medium-sized and that around 60% of all apprentices are employed by small and medium-sized employers https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/555052/Size_and_Industry_of_Businesses_with_Apprentices_Final_Pdf.pdf).   Under new funding policy from May 2017, smaller employers that don't pay the apprenticeship levy will pay a co-investment rate of only 10% towards the costs of apprenticeship training. We are waiving this co-investment requirement for employers with fewer than 50 employees, when they recruit a 16-18 year old or a 19-24 year old formerly in care or with an Education and Health Care plan As part of the development of funding policy we have considered the potential impact that requiring co-investment will have on starts at small and medium-sized employers. This may cause a small initial fall in demand until employers adapt to the new system. By making sure smaller employers understand the benefits of apprenticeships; that the process of accessing them is simple and easy; and additional financial support is available for younger apprentices or those with additional needs, we believe that small and medium sized employers can and will continue to play a critical role in growing apprenticeship opportunities.

English Baccalaureate

Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they gave to recommendations of the Bacc for the Future campaign in deciding which subjects to include in the English Baccalaureate.

Lord Nash: The English Baccalaureate (EBacc) comprises the core academic curriculum: English, mathematics, the sciences (including computer science), history or geography and a language. The subjects are closely based on the facilitating subjects at A level, which the Russell Group of universities say keep a wide range of degree courses open to students. The Government believes that, alongside the EBacc, all pupils should have access to an excellent, well-rounded education and the arts are central to this. All schools, including academies and free schools, must provide a broad and balanced curriculum that promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society. We expect all schools to offer a wide range of options alongside the EBacc and have designed it to be limited in size so that there is flexibility for pupils to take additional GCSEs that reflect their own individual interests and strengths. We are considering the responses to the consultation on the implementation of the EBacc, including those from the Bacc for the Future campaign, and we will publish the Government response in due course.

Archaeology: GCE A-level

Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the discontinuance of archaeology A-level on the number of students taking archaeology at undergraduate level.

Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the discontinuance of history of art A-level on the number of students taking history of art at undergraduate level.

Lord Nash: We are disappointed that AQA has taken the decision to withdraw from offering these subjects at A level. Neither subject, however, is a pre-requisite for degree level study, and both are taken by a relatively small number of students.The option for AQA or another exam board to develop A level specifications for these subjects in future will also remain open. We are in discussion with the exam boards on this issue.

Schools: Gypsy Roma Traveller History Month

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they intend to take to encourage schools to promote Gypsy Roma Traveller History month in June 2017.

Lord Nash: Schools have a crucial role to play in celebrating the history and culture of all their pupils, fostering inclusion and reaching out to the communities they serve. The Government is keen to support and encourage all schools to fulfil this important role. The Department for Education is currently considering the drivers for raising the educational attainment of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) pupils, drawing on expertise from these communities, and will consider GRT History Month in that context.

Children in Care: Travellers

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Gypsy and Traveller children were taken into care in 2015 and how this compares with the general population.

Lord Nash: In the year ending 31 March 2016, 32,050 children started to be looked after, of which 210 had an ethnic origin of Gypsy/Roma or Traveller of Irish heritage. The comparable figures for the year ending 31 March 2015, were 31,340 children starting to be looked after, of which 240 were of Gypsy/Roma or Traveller of Irish Heritage ethnic origin.

University Technical Colleges

Lord Allen of Kensington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of university technical colleges on improving the supply of British workers with high quality science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills, and in reducing the skills shortages experienced by UK businesses.

Lord Nash: We know that university technical colleges (UTCs) can be a popular choice with young people who want to follow a technical curriculum and we anticipate that as UTCs become more established and more young people choose to attend them, they will help to meet the needs of our science, technology and engineering industries. At full capacity, the UTCs currently open or in development will offer around 35,000 places for young people to help them gain skills for the world of work. The UTC programme is relatively new and the destination data we hold is limited. Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 destination data for all schools is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/destinations-of-ks4-and-ks5-pupils-2015-provisional

University Technical Colleges

Lord Allen of Kensington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to encourage employers and universities to become involved with the university technical colleges programme.

Lord Nash: The Department for Education awards an annual grant to the Baker Dearing Educational Trust to provide advice, guidance and support for employers and universities wishing to become involved with the university technical colleges programme.We have seen many examples of universities sponsoring good schools and that is why we have set out in the Schools that Work for Everyone consultation our proposals for universities having a greater involvement in the establishment and sponsorship of schools including UTCs.

Ministry of Justice

Glen Parva Young Offender Institution

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the decision not to construct a secure college on the site of HMP Glen Parva, what plans they have for that prison.

Lord Keen of Elie: We are investing £1.3bn to reform and modernise the prison estate to make it more efficient, safer and focused on supporting prisoner rehabilitation. We will build new prisons and close prisons that are in poor condition and those which do not have a long-term future in the estate. We will apply for planning permission to redevelop the site of HMP & YOI Glen Parva. If we successfully achieve planning permission at the site, HMP & YOI Glen Parva would close and be replaced by a new, fit for purpose, facility.

Tribunals

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Keen of Elie on 17 October (HL2078), which stakeholders, including disability groups, officials are engaging with, and on what relevant matters, in the consultation on the tribunal system Transforming our Justice System.

Lord Keen of Elie: ‘Transforming our Justice System’ sets out the Government’s plans to modernise the justice system and it consults on specific elements of these reform proposals. This includes certain issues that are relevant to the tribunals, such as tribunal panel composition and the provision of ‘assisted digital’ services. As the noble Lady will be aware, the consultation is available to the public, and anyone with an interest is welcome to feed in their views. Ministry of Justice and HMCTS have engaged directly with the judiciary, who are fundamental to the success of reform, in considering the operational implications of the reform proposals. They have also engaged and worked with other relevant Government departments, key legal institutions, and a range of stakeholders with an interest in disability and mental health. These discussions are ongoing and will continue as the plans are further developed and implemented.

Youth Justice: Travellers

Baroness Hodgson of Abinger: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to enable the identification of Gypsies and Travellers in the youth justice system so that data can be gathered.

Lord Keen of Elie: The Youth Justice Board and HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) publish an annual report on ‘Children in Custody’ that monitors the number of gypsy, traveller and Romany (GRT) children in youth offenders’ institutions and secure training centres. The reports are available on the HMIP website. Secure Children’s Homes are monitored by Ofsted rather than HMIP and are therefore not included in this report.

Ministry of Defence

HMS Illustrious

Lord Kinnock: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the willingness of a group of investors to purchase and refurbish HMS Illustrious so that it can become a museum in the UK, whether they will now suspend the sale and removal of the ship so that it is not broken up for scrap and instead, in keeping with the Government statement of September 2012, "preserved intact as a lasting tribute to service personnel who served" on HMS Illustrious, HMS Invincible and HMS Ark Royal.

Earl Howe: Following an open competition a contract to recycle the vessel was awarded to Leyal Ship Recycling Ltd on 23 August 2016. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) subsequently received an outline proposal from a business consortium to purchase the former HMS ILLUSTRIOUS as a heritage asset. However, it has not been taken forward. HMS ILLUSTRIOUS is now the property of Leyal Ship Recycling Ltd and to cancel the sale agreement at this late stage would result in significant financial cost to the MOD.

RAF Northolt

Lord Trefgarne: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the decision proposing a third runway at Heathrow, what will be the future of nearby RAF Northolt.

Earl Howe: RAF Northolt remains a core Ministry of Defence (MOD) aerodrome. Current operations at RAF Northolt aerodrome remain unaffected at this time by the announcement of the proposals for a third runway at Heathrow.However, NATS Holdings (formerly National Air Traffic Services), the air traffic services provider, has advised that the delivery of any new capacity within the London and South East area will require substantial redesign of current airspace structures. The impact on the current levels of operations at other aerodromes in the region such as RAF Northolt will be addressed during the design phase, and the MOD remains a key stakeholder in all Civil Aviation Authority airspace design work.

Islamic State: Military Intervention

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that future air strike missions against land targets in Syria or Iraq, in which RAF aircraft are involved, have had their targets independently verified and approved in advance by British military personnel.

Earl Howe: RAF strikes are approved through a strict assessment process undertaken by British military, policy and legal advisers. All the available information is considered in accordance with strict targeting criteria to ensure compliance with UK and international laws and UK Rules of Engagement. The authorisation to conduct a strike is only given when this process is complete and the conditions for the release of weapons are met.

Syria: Military Intervention

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 21 October (HL2323), when they expect to be able to report to Parliament the results of the coalition investigation into the air attack on 17 September.

Earl Howe: We await the outcome of the coalition investigation into the airstrike in Syria on 17 September. Once it is published by the coalition, we will inform Parliament of its conclusions.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Common Land

Lord Lexden: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 24 October (HL 2124), what guidance they have given to Parish Councils regarding their powers to erect bus shelters on village greens.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: We have published information about the management of town and village greens, which is available on the Government website Gov.uk. Under the heading Manage your town and village greens this states that works must not be carried out which could damage the town or village green or interrupt its use as a place for exercise and enjoyment. It further states that you should check the need to get planning permission before any work is carried out, but that no special permission is required if the planned works are to improve the green for visitors’ enjoyment.

Home Office

Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse

Baroness Massey of Darwen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the UK is not represented on the Committee of Parties to the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The UK signed the Council of Europe's Convention on the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse in 2008.The UK is not currently represented on the Committee as we are yet to ratify the Convention. Home Office officials are working with the devolved administrations, overseas territories and Crown dependencies, and leading the work to examine what needs to be done under domestic legislation and in terms of practical arrangements before the whole of the UK can be assessed to be fully compliant and in a position to ratify.The Government takes its international commitments very seriously and will only commit to formal ratification when it is absolutely satisfied that the whole of the UK complies with all articles.

Dangerous Dogs

Lord Trees: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many community protection notices relating to dog behaviour have been issued under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 since it came into force.

Lord Trees: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the efficacy of community protection notices in reducing dog attacks on humans since the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 came into force.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 introduced new and more flexible powers to make it quicker and easier for police forces and local authorities to protect victims and communities from anti-social and nuisance behaviour.This includes the Community Protection Notice. The Home Office does not collect or hold information on the use of these powers by local agencies.

Refugees: Children

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the refugees taken under the vulnerable children's Resettlement Scheme are (1) Christian, (2) Yazidi, (3) male Muslims over 15-years old.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The former immigration Minister announced on 21 April 2016 that a new scheme would be introduced to resettle vulnerable children from the Middle East and North Africa region, which would bring up to 3,000 people to the UK over the life of the Parliament.Data on the number of people who have been resettled under this scheme will be published in the quarterly Home Office statistics.

West Midlands Police: Uniforms

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the proposal by the Chief Constable of West Midlands Police to consider allowing female police officers to wear the burka when in uniform.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: It is for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners to decide what uniform is needed for different roles within each force.

Cabinet Office

Voting Rights: British Nationals Abroad

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 20 October (HL Deb, cols 2439–40), what estimate they have made of the total number of people who will be enfranchised by this proposal.

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 20 October (HL Deb, cols 2439–40), what estimate they have made of the total cost of processing the consequential application and declaration requirements for people living overseas for 15 years or more.

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 20 October (HL Deb, cols 2439–40), on which parliamentary constituency's electoral roll those new electors who were not previously registered to vote will be registered.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: The Government estimates that a further 3 million British citizens resident overseas will be enfranchised under the ‘votes for life’ proposals as set out in the policy statement published on 7 October. The Government estimates one-off implementation costs (to the online register to vote service and local authority IT systems, for example) to be £0.9 million. The total additional costs of registering newly enfranchised overseas electors will ultimately depend on the numbers who apply. Under the proposals, British citizens overseas who were not previously registered to vote when resident in the UK will be eligible to register in respect of the UK address at which they were last resident.

Electoral Register: British Nationals Abroad

Lord Rennard: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of British citizens living overseas who may be entitled to qualify for inclusion on UK electoral registers if the current 15 year time limit is abolished; how they intend to ensure that it will be possible to check previous residency or inclusion against previous electoral registers given that those registers may no longer exist; and what estimate they have made of the cost to local authorities of conducting such a process.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: The Government estimates that a further 3 million British citizens resident overseas would be enfranchised by the 'votes for life' proposals set out in the policy statement published on 7 October.The policy statement also sets out how applicants will be required to establish a connection to a UK address. For those whose previous registration cannot be verified, or who were not previously registered, documentary evidence or an attestation can be used. The additional costs will be highly dependent upon the number of eligible electors who apply to vote and to renew their registrations.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the UK will still be able to trade under the existing EU free trade agreements once the UK has left the EU.

Lord Price: The UK remains committed to being a world leader in free trade, working with a range of partners to strengthen our economic ties. We recognise the need for a smooth transition which minimises disruption to our trading relationships. We are considering the options for this and will of course work with our EU and international partners in taking it forward. We are taking advantage of all the opportunities available to us to ensure that Britain becomes the global leader in free trade once we leave the EU.

Department of Health

Hospitals: Richmond upon Thames

Baroness Kramer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total funding given to each hospital within the Borough of Richmond in each of the last three years for which figures are available; and how much of that funding was for new capital expenditure.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The information requested is not held centrally. Overall capital expenditure for each of the last three years for South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, which is responsible for Richmond Royal Hospital and Barnes Hospital in the Borough of Richmond, is shown in the table below: 2013-14£2,080,0002014-15£9,723,0002015-16£22,000Total£11,825,000 Overall capital expenditure for each of the last three years for Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust, which is responsible for Teddington Memorial Hospital in the Borough of Richmond, is shown in the table below: 2013-14£482,0002014-15£1,885,0002015-16£2,768,000Total£5,135,000

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Baroness Shephard of Northwold: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) are penalised for breaches of targets set out in the NHS Constitution and pledges on waiting times, and Acute Hospital Trusts (AHTs) are not penalised for the same breaches; and if so, whether this represents differing treatment of CCGs and AHTs by NHS England.

Lord Prior of Brampton: National Health Service clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are not directly penalised for each breach of NHS Constitution waiting time commitments, or the associated operational standards. However, access to Quality Premium scheme funding, which CCGs can earn in addition to their normal allocations for achieving specific improvements in care or outcomes, is partially dependent on each CCG’s performance against waiting times standards. More broadly, NHS England is supported by legislation in exercising formal powers of direction if it is satisfied that a CCG is failing or at risk of failing to discharge its functions. The NHS Standard Contract provides for financial sanctions against acute hospital trusts for breaching waiting time operational standards. NHS England issues planning guidance annually, the latest of which is NHS Operational Planning and Contracting Guidance 2017-2019. This sets out the waiting time standards, other operational standards and quality requirements that providers of NHS healthcare services are expected to meet in order to deliver the rights and pledges in the NHS Constitution. Copies of the Guidance and the NHS Constitution are attached. These requirements are set out in the NHS Standard Contract that must be used by CCGs for all contracts with hospital providers of NHS healthcare services. The Contract sets out the consequences of breaches of the waiting time standards and other requirements by hospital providers. For waiting time standards, this consequence is in the form of a financial sanction. However, from 2016-17, the operation of contractual sanctions for poor performance against waiting time standards has been suspended where a hospital provider is receiving funding from the Sustainability and Transformation Fund (STF), and meets certain other specified conditions, including the agreement of performance trajectories with NHS Improvement and NHS England. These arrangements are arranged at avoiding ‘double jeopardy’ for hospital providers within scope of the STF. If they fail to achieve their agreed performance trajectories, these hospital providers will face withdrawal of an element of their STF funding by NHS Improvement, but will not face application of the normal contractual sanctions by their commissioners.



NHS Constitution 
(PDF Document, 526.87 KB)




NHS Operational Planning Guidance 
(PDF Document, 456.25 KB)

NHS: Finance

Baroness Shephard of Northwold: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why NHS England have told commissioners that they cannot utilise non-recurrent reserves held in their funding allocation to mitigate future potential risks; and what are the reasons for putting commissioners into financial turnaround processes when they have sufficient reserves available to them to maintain their financial duties.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The National Health Service leadership bodies have set out their own plan for delivering financial sustainability for the NHS, in the Five Year Forward View (October 2014) and Strengthening Financial Performance and Accountability in 2016/17 document (July 2016), a copy of which is attached. It is clear that there is a significant financial challenge across the NHS, due to the increasing demand for health services as a consequence of the ageing and growing population, new drugs and treatments and safer staffing requirements. This is why we are investing the additional £10 billion the NHS has said it needs to implement its own plan for the future. It is absolutely sensible for reserves to be created as part of this plan, to help deliver financial sustainability and insulate the global health economy from financial risk. Decisions must be made at a macro level on the best and most efficient use of resources, to maximise benefit to front-line healthcare services. All clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) must comply with a financial framework, devised to support the delivery of this plan. Any CCG not doing so, will be required to devise a financial recovery plan as part of measures to improve the financial performance of that organisation.



Strengthening Financial Accountability 
(PDF Document, 1.35 MB)

HIV Infection

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to ensure full adoption of the British HIV Association standards to deliver optimal HIV diagnosis and care.

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking, additional to the Public Health Outcomes Framework, to ensure that the benefits of early testing for HIV are realised.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Local authorities are responsible for the commissioning of services to test and diagnose HIV. NHS England commissions treatment and care for those accessing HIV services from the point of HIV diagnosis onwards. Commissioners will take account of the British HIV Association standards, but these are not mandatory. Public Health England (PHE) has a comprehensive surveillance system that captures new HIV diagnoses and subsequent HIV care throughout the United Kingdom. These data are not only used to monitor the numbers living with HIV, but the quality of care received. This information directly informs the commissioning of HIV services which ensures data are complete and includes every individual in HIV care. In the UK, PHE data demonstrate 97% of patients were linked to care within three months of diagnosis in 2015 and overall, 96% of people seen for HIV care received treatment with anti-retroviral therapy, and 94% of those treated achieved viral suppression. People with a suppressed viral load are extremely unlikely to pass on their infection. These data show that the benefits of early HIV testing are fully realised as the vast majority of people are rapidly linked to care, and effectively treated, so that they are no longer at risk from passing on their infection.

HIV Infection: Screening

Baroness Gould of Potternewton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what further steps they intend to take to ensure that HIV indicator conditions, such as shingles and glandular fever, are understood by medical professionals as an opportunity to offer a HIV test.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Health Education England has developed a number of e-learning sessions on Sexual Health and HIV across programmes designed for foundation trainees, general practitioners, dentists and radiologists, as well as specialists. The programmes cover topics such as HIV testing, the importance of early diagnosis and oral manifestations of HIV and AIDS. The content for these programmes is available to all National Health Service employees irrespective of their speciality. The Department has funded the Medical Foundation for AIDS and Sexual Health to produce resources to support non-specialist clinicians in primary and secondary care services to offer HIV testing to help reduce late diagnosis of HIV. This includes HIV Testing in Practice, an interactive web-based resource for primary care which went live in November 2014.